I'ved poked around Washington today, talking with friends on the Hill who confirm the worst: Big Pharma and Big Insurance are gaining ground in their campaign to kill the public option in the emerging health care bill.

You know why, of course. They don't want a public option that would compete with private insurers and use its bargaining power to negotiate better rates with drug companies. They argue that would be unfair. Unfair? Unfair to give more people better health care at lower cost? To Pharma and Insurance, "unfair" is anything that undermines their profits.

So they're pulling out all the stops -- pushing Democrats and a handful of so-called "moderate" Republicans who say they're in favor of a public option to support legislation that would include it in name only. One of their proposals is to break up the public option into small pieces under multiple regional third-party administrators that would have little or no bargaining leverage. A second is to give the public option to the states where Big Pharma and Big Insurance can easily buy off legislators and officials, as they've been doing for years. A third is bind the public plan to the same rules private insurers have already wangled, thereby making it impossible for the public plan to put competitive pressure on the insurers.

I'm sorry and killing this option is a bad thing? The Federal Govt. does not belong in the business of direct competetion with a private company that it also regulates. The Obama administration knows they cannot get a "single payer" plan through congress they don't have the vote. let's forget for a moment the constitutional issue. So what do they do? they set up a Govt. run option that will in effect drive everyone to the Govt. run program as Insurance carriers drop the option, or get out of the business period, in effect getting a "single payer" system anyway. So is there any doubt that a private company would not want to fight this? I know I would not want to be in direct competetion with the Federal Govt.

I'm sorry and killing this option is a bad thing? The Federal Govt. does not belong in the business of direct competetion with a private company that it also regulates. The Obama administration knows they cannot get a "single payer" plan through congress they don't have the vote. let's forget for a moment the constitutional issue. So what do they do? they set up a Govt. run option that will in effect drive everyone to the Govt. run program as Insurance carriers drop the option, or get out of the business period, in effect getting a "single payer" system anyway. So is there any doubt that a private company would not want to fight this? I know I would not want to be in direct competetion with the Federal Govt.

I'ved poked around Washington today, talking with friends on the Hill who confirm the worst: Big Pharma and Big Insurance are gaining ground in their campaign to kill the public option in the emerging health care bill.

You know why, of course. They don't want a public option that would compete with private insurers and use its bargaining power to negotiate better rates with drug companies. They argue that would be unfair. Unfair? Unfair to give more people better health care at lower cost? To Pharma and Insurance, "unfair" is anything that undermines their profits.

So they're pulling out all the stops -- pushing Democrats and a handful of so-called "moderate" Republicans who say they're in favor of a public option to support legislation that would include it in name only. One of their proposals is to break up the public option into small pieces under multiple regional third-party administrators that would have little or no bargaining leverage. A second is to give the public option to the states where Big Pharma and Big Insurance can easily buy off legislators and officials, as they've been doing for years. A third is bind the public plan to the same rules private insurers have already wangled, thereby making it impossible for the public plan to put competitive pressure on the insurers.

I refuse to support this ridiculously expensive and bloated for profit healthcare system. Every other Western country has a single payer system, and they pay HALF what we pay for healthcare. Why? Because they don't have to pay for insurance companies, liability lawyers, and Big Pharma. Even the doctors are now in favor of a single payer system.

Honestly, I'm just sick of this shit. I had insurance, but now I can't afford it because I moved to a different state. Hipaa rules didn't help me out any and I'm screwed. The only way I can get coverage again is to go to work for a company that offers insurance. I kind of like being self-employed. So now I have to choose, my career or health insurance.

The insurance companies don't give a shit about the health of their policy holders. Actually, I should rephrase that. They do care that you remain healthy. As soon as you become sick, they will do whatever they can to get you off of their plan because you are now a liability.

But I guess that's just my personal problem, so long as the rest of you are covered, why worry about me? I'm just a number anyway. I wonder how you all would feel if you were in my shoes. Would you still be so supportive of the wonderful insurance companies? Would you still be more worried about your choices? Oh that's right, you wouldn't really have many choices.

We have not had health insurance since 1995. It became too expensive to maintain. Along with there were so many things it did not pay for and the deductible was $1,500.00 a year for each of us it was not something I could afford to keep paying.

On my trip recently to see my folks after my dad's heart surgery I met one of their neighbors I had not met before. She is the daughter of a guy that was good friends with my grandpa. She and her husband moved into her dad's house when they retired. Her husband's mom has alzheimer's. She was telling us how they had heart surgery done on this poor woman. Over eighty thousand dollars in hospital and doctors to extend the life of someone who does not know where she is or who she is. The heart surgery is estimated to extend her life by fifteen years. The institutions will make out well over the extended years of her life.

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